Benton County Farmers, Ranchers Can Get Help From Extreme Winter Damage

The Farm Services Office in Prosser is urging Benton County farmers to get in their damage reports, as there is disaster assistance and emergency loans available.

According to information released by the FSA Office, which is a branch of the USDA, the agency is urging what they called "timely" loss reports so farmers can get help with the damage caused by our extreme winter weather.

Victoria Barth of the FSA office said Thursday they want to help farmers recover from their losses. The long periods of snow, cold temperatures, followed by rain, runoff and other thawing has created sink holes, crevaces, and washouts. These in turn have damaged farm lands, livestock grazing areas, and even taken out fences and other infrastructure.